Page 112 of Priest and his Anarchist

“Sit down…” Priest warns, earning his eyes to finally land on me.

I almost pause. Almost. This house is beautiful.

“Awww…Pookie, I’m not done, though!” I bat my lashes at him, but when the dark shadows over his features turn a familiar shade of gray, I roll my eyes and fall onto the chair beside the big, dark-haired one with the weird colored eyes. I was pleased to finally meet his friends, or family, but the more that time goes on, the tighter the tension gets in my head. Had it been this long? Did they forget who I was? Maybe they need reminding.

My knee jiggles beneath the table, but I keep my eyes fixed on the dark wall behind them. The dining table is long enough thatif you want to whisper anything, no one could hear. That bothers me since I know they all want to whisper about me.

Her eyes burn the side of my face like a flame, so I give her what she wants, cleaning the spilled liquid from the curve of my lip and smiling at her with a wide grin.

“Can I help you?”

“Yes,” the raven-haired one says, and Jesus, she is pretty. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a girl as pretty as her. I’m not so sure that I’d even call her pretty since she looks good enough to fuck. She leans back in her chair, her black hair rolling over her slim shoulder. “You can tell us why the fuck you killed our friend.”

“Hmm…” I shuffle myself up on the table as waiters clear the dirty dishes, leaving the abundance of juices, wine, and expensive whiskey. “Nope. I don’t want to.”

My shoulders lift in a shrug, and I haven’t even tapped my way to where Priest is when the pain radiates in my back. Like a slice of hot metal, I fall to my knees in a wobble, the laughter leaving my mouth in a burst of mania.

“You shot me?” I roll onto my back, blinking up at the ceiling.

“Stella!” Priest is in front of me now, and it wasn’t the first time I’ve seen pain flicker over his eyes. The first time, well, the first time was when he realized Luna was gone forever and she was never coming back.

“It’s a flesh wound! I’ve had claw marks across my face deeper than that!” she seethes, her crimson-red lips sneered at me. “But since she’s already wounded.” She shrugs, flicking the elongated fork between her fingers in a way that makes me question whether she’s human. “Let me put her out of her misery.”

“Bitch,” I cough, banging on my chest. My hands find Priest’s shirt, leaving a smudge of red. “Huh. Red is totally your color.” Swinging my leg off the table, I push past the pain radiating from my back and find myself in Priest’s arms, right between my legs.

The muscles in his jaw tighten, and his eyes return to their vacant harness. The exact kind that resides in there when he realizes she’s not with us.

“Priest, how could you…”

My head snaps to the side, where a girl sits with her knees pressed to her chest and her blonde hair pinned up in a high pony. She has a natural gold tint to her skin, and when she swipes the tears from below her eyes and sniffs, bright blue eyes the color of the ocean collide with mine. “I told you she needed me, and you couldn’t! You just couldn’t allow her to need anyone that isn’t you!”

Her eyes fly to mine, and the look of sadness is replaced with something familiar with hate. “I wouldn’t look too close.” The corner of her lip curls. “Or I’ll be inclined to carve poetry into your flesh by the bone of your teeth.”

My brow curves. Impressive. “Nice.”

She shoves the blanket that’s on her lap off and stomps off through the opening to the other side of the house.

“What is this place, anyway?” I ask, jumping down from the table and dancing my way to the floor-to-ceiling windows. Too many trees. Too many…plants. Everything will die, die, die.

“Ick…” I turn, only to see all faces looking directly at me. I start counting. “One, two, three, four, five, six—” My head tilts when I see someone new and big near the other side of the table. Deep-brown skin, dark hair, light eyes, and a scar that runs directly across his neck.

“Oh, someone failed?” I tsk, shaking my finger. “I must say…” Sliding on top of the sofa, my feet dangle over the edge as I trace the rugged scar. “Priest would not miss.” I clap my hands together. “But anyway! While we’re here, could someone fill me in on Luna and the person she was? I mean, to have Priest, the Mad Prince fall in love with her, she must be someone special.”

“Jesus, you’re dumb as fuck.” The only other girl left laughs in her drink. She has long brown hair, green eyes, and looks way too similar to Priest to not be related.

Ah! The twin!

“—Halen…” the boy beside her growls, keeping his eyes pointed on me like a loaded weapon.

“Gosh…” I murmur, making my way to the fireplace where a range of photos are framed. “You guys think I’ll hurt you, huh? Scared of little old me?”

“Little old you?” the same girl snaps, and I smirk, running my finger down the glass of a photo that was taken somewhere in a car.

I thought it might have been old, until I realize Luna is in it with the other girls here tonight. She’s wearing a jacket far too big to not be Priest’s, and she smiles widely at the camera. A face so symmetrical and perfect. Her hair is braided on either side, with two smaller bows on both ends.

I roll my eyes. Pathetic cunt of a woman she was. I’m glad she’s dead. Now it’s as it should be, with Priest and I together forever until the end of time. I am not going to skip through the madness, I am going to eradicate it.

“Little old you destroyed everything.” His voice is getting closer, and my smile is wide, despite the ache in my back. “Little old you took everything from not just me, but everyone.” Another step. “Little old you, is capable of anything.”

---